ASEAN Summit in Manila Runs for 3 Days Ahead of Trump’s Arrival to Discuss Trade and Chips
Key Facts
Southeast Asian leaders opened their annual summit in Manila on Sunday, November 15, kicking off three days of talks that include dialogue with leaders from outside the region, including U.S. President Donald Trump. Trump leaves Washington on Monday and is expected to arrive in Manila on Tuesday afternoon with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, according to Philippine officials cited by the Associated Press. The visit puts trade and technology, alongside security ties, at the top of the U.S. president’s Asia agenda. Trump is expected to meet Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Wednesday at the presidential palace in Manila. The meeting is expected to renew the two countries’ commitment to their treaty alliance, ahead of the presidents’ onward travel to China.
The Manila visit is part of a broader regional itinerary that begins with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit and then moves to the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum summit in Shenzhen. The Philippine News Agency said the ASEAN summit is scheduled for November 15-17, while the APEC summit in China will take place on November 18-19. After the Manila meetings, Trump and Marcos will travel separately to Shenzhen to attend the summit hosted by Chinese President Xi Jinping. The summit brings together 21 economies, placing the expected meeting between Trump and Xi within a broader regional gathering. The itinerary thus combines talks on regional alliances with direct engagement with Beijing.
One issue the U.S. administration may discuss is how to close loopholes in existing trade restrictions on China, according to the Associated Press, citing discussions among Trump’s aides. Options include using export licenses and preventing Chinese companies from accessing advanced chips online. The issue takes on added importance as U.S. restrictions on sales of advanced semiconductors remain in place and Congress debates tighter technology controls. The agency said the Senate version of a defense policy bill would allow Congress to review licenses to sell advanced artificial intelligence chips to China. The draft also calls for monitoring where chips end up and urging allies to align their restrictions with U.S. measures. Available information did not specify whether these proposals would become decisions during the trip.
Elon Musk is accompanying Trump on the trip to the Philippines and China, according to the Associated Press, which cited administration officials as saying his economic and security interests make him an important adviser to the president. Musk’s participation adds an economic dimension to a trip spanning trade, technology and alliances. On semiconductors, the agency said Nvidia held about 95% of the Chinese market before its sales there fell as a result of export restrictions. It also noted that Trump earlier in 2026 allowed exports of advanced H200 chips, though they are not the most powerful. This background underscores the sensitivity of export rules for technology companies seeking to sell in China, and the issue’s connection to Trump’s upcoming talks with Xi.
The Manila summit is taking place amid regional security issues that extend beyond trade and technology. The Associated Press said the summit opened amid expected calls for restraint and the peaceful resolution of disputes, including ongoing tensions in the South China Sea and Myanmar’s civil war. In the South China Sea, China and ASEAN countries have provisionally agreed on about 80% of the sections in a proposed code of conduct, according to regional diplomats cited by the agency. Remaining disagreements include the code’s geographic scope and whether it would be legally binding. Negotiations are expected to continue into the following year, with these issues providing a security backdrop to meetings between regional and U.S. leaders.
The summit also comes against a domestic economic backdrop: the Philippine economy grew 2.1% year over year in the third quarter of 2026, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority. Growth slowed from 2.4% in the second quarter and 4.0% in the third quarter of 2025. The result was below the 3.0% forecast for the third quarter by economists surveyed by Reuters. The agency identified wholesale and retail trade and repair of motor vehicles among the largest contributors to growth, with the activity rising 3.54%. Public administration and defense and compulsory social security grew 9.9%, while financial and insurance activities expanded 3.47%. The growth figure remains a standalone economic indicator, separate from Trump’s visit and the summit talks.
China’s trade will also return to the top of the trip’s agenda amid strong October trade data. Chinese exports rose 35.2% year over year and imports increased 41.6%, according to customs data cited by the Associated Press. China’s trade surplus reached $1.04 trillion in the first 10 months of 2026. It fell in October to $105.3 billion from $133.5 billion in September. An economist told the agency that trade would be among the leading issues at the expected meeting between Trump and Xi on the sidelines of the APEC summit. U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said in September that the U.S.-China Business Council had recommended $30 billion in non-sensitive goods trade for each side that could benefit from better tariff treatment in the future, and that the framework could improve access for about 30% of U.S. exports to China.